Three days earlier.“Mr. Parker-Berret, the deal with the Grahams is off. We have secured the contract and works will begin in two weeks,” one of the project managers reported during their monthly meeting in the conference room.Cooper was impressed by the manager’s report and asked about the Tells, the latest company the Berret’s Housing was soliciting a deal from.They had requested proposals from contractors across the country for the building of their new ultra-modern company.The manager in charge of the Tell's proposal had forgotten about it and was already sweating.“I will go submit the proposal after this meeting,” he said.Cooper’s expression changed instantly, and he asked, “Do you know the deadline?”“Yes. We still have three days until submission,” the manager lied subtly, fearing the consequences of telling the truth.Unfortunately for him, Cooper was not fooled and snarled, “Really?”“Yes,” the manager answered, afraid of Cooper’s piercing gaze and cold demeanor.“No. T
Unfortunately, Rosie’s phone number was switched off, so Cooper dialed Curtis’s number. Sadly, the latter was also not answering. Cooper partly guessed that his twin brother was upset with him because Rosie had gone to make a report. As such, he left messages for his twin brother, but the latter did not respond to any of them. Cooper was frustrated and knowing his twin brother, he might not speak to him until it was too late, so he decided to pay him a visit in his office. Upon reaching there, Curtis was busy with a lot of work, but there was no enthusiasm in anything he was doing. It was as if he was working because he had to work, and that meant that something was eating him up. “What do you want here, Cooper?” Curtis asked in a deflated tone when his twin brother entered the office. Cooper was quite disappointed that Curtis would allow a woman to come between them, as they were always inseparable as kids. It wa
Cooper had anticipated that this would happen and had come prepared. Four policemen stepped out of their cars, and there were steel benders too, so the security men knew that Cooper was serious. With trembling hands, the security man picked up the phone and called Rosie’s father. “Sir, Mr. Parker-Berret’s twin brother is at the gate with four policemen and steel benders. He threatened to drive through the gate if we don’t open it.” “And who told you not to open the gate?” Rosie’s father asked. The security man was confused, remembering Rosalind’s order. “Sir, it was the elder miss of the house. She…” “Just let the man in,” Rosie’s father said calmly. In the living room where he sat in his recliner, Rosie’s elder brother, Richmond, was upset by his father’s decision. “Dad, how could you? Rosie doesn’t want to see him.” The old man was unfazed by what Rosie wanted. She was receiving treatment when she kept visiting
Earlier, Richmond had gone to Rosie’s room to warn her about Cooper’s presence, but when he arrived, she was soundly asleep. So, he took a piece of paper and wrote a few words, forging her handwriting. He hoped it would be enough to deter Cooper and send him away, but he was wrong. Richmond was upset when Cooper insisted on seeing Rosie, even after Richmond broke the news that she had passed away. When Richmond said he was going to call the emergency service, his father expected him to bring out his phone, but instead, he went to see his mother in the kitchen. His father followed him, engulfed with suspicion. “Mom, dad allowed that son of a bitch to see Rosie.” “You shouldn’t call him that. He is Curtis's twin brother and also from a powerful family.” “It doesn’t mean he should treat my sister poorly.” “She was the one who kept pursuing him,” his mother retorted. “So, she’s alive?” his father asked from
Rosie’s parents and brother rushed inside to calm the situation as they saw that Rosie wasn’t getting along with Cooper. It was strange how she always wanted to be by his side but was not willing to undergo treatment. They were happy though that Cooper was there, as he was the only one who could force her to receive treatment. Rosie’s eyes were filled with tears as her brother tried to comfort her. Her parents stayed with the doctors and out of her view. “Hey Rosie, let’s try it again, okay?” Richmond said softly. He went to comfort Rosie on the bed, but she was beyond control. Even with her small voice, she kept yelling at anyone who came close and addressed her brother, “Stop patronizing me. Stop making me feel like a problem.” Cooper wondered how a sick person could behave like this. It was as if Rosie was going crazy. However, her words hinted something to Cooper, that Rosie didn’t like to be patronized.
“Rosie, I never thought I’d say this to any woman, but no woman has ever scared me the way you did. When I thought I lost you, I felt like I lost everything,” Cooper said tenderly. However, Rosie felt that she had bitten off more than she could chew in going after Cooper all this while. He deserved a healthy, intelligent, and smart woman. Not a sick one like Rosie. “But I have nothing to offer. I was homeschooled and I’m not even pretty,” she lowered her head and said. Cooper felt that she said she wasn’t pretty because of how her hair was all shaven. Caressing her naked head, he smiled and said to her, “You are very pretty.” Her head was lowered, so he lifted her chin in the palm of his hand. Holding her gaze, he said to her once again, “The prettiest and strongest woman I’ve ever known.” Cooper’s palm was soon wet with her tears. “You are saying this because you want me to get better. Once I get better, you will leave. You will get married.” Her voice broke along the way, an
“Are you even my twin brother?” Curtis dropped the tray on the table and responded, “She didn’t want you to know.” Cooper glanced at the woman on the bed and beckoned to the door. “Let’s talk outside.” Curtis obeyed and walked out. “How is she?” He asked. Cooper did not directly give him an answer and instead said, “You knew she was going to die and never told me about it.” He sounded bitter, and Curtis felt remorseful but also felt that he did the right thing by respecting Rosie’s wishes. “She didn’t want you to know,” Curtis said defensively. Cooper was disappointed. “But you knew that she would have accepted treatment if I gave her attention and yet, you preferred to respect her wishes until they took her to her grave?” Curtis was hit with greater remorse at Cooper’s words as the latter added, “Curtis, I’m not vile. If you had told me secretly, I would have known what to do. You know that I would have never all
Rosie returned before Cooper had a chance to respond to the text message. Hand in hand, they joined the family, and Ivory rose to her feet at the sight of Rosie."Rosie, you look so pretty."Rosie instantly became self-conscious, knowing that she had stepped out of her room without a wig.She made a move to go back for it, but Cooper had already read her mind and blocked her path. "I told you that you look prettier without it."His voice was low, so no one heard what he said to her. Rosie’s family was shocked to see that she had stepped out of her room without a wig but remembered from what they watched from the monitors, how Cooper said that she was beautiful without the wig."Thanks Ivory, you look stunning," Rosie forced a smile, feeling uncomfortable with her hair like that. Ivory hugged and walked her to her seat before taking hers as she said,"Thanks, and what do you like? I will help with your plate."Cooper sat beside Rosie and countered, "Isn’t that supposed to be my job?" H
Garvin had a small smile on his face. Cooper and Gerald might be wise, but Garvin was still more experienced. “Your method would not have been the best.” “I would have sent them to jail,” Gerald said. He hated that Yvette and Nathaniel were walking around freely, so what if they were impoverished? “They would have served a few terms and then be walking free. They would also come back to enjoy their family’s wealth as if nothing happened. It’s the reason why I took this action,” Garvin explained. It made sense to Cooper and Gerald that though their plan would punish those two well, it would have also been for a short term, but Garvin’s method was a long-term one. “Fine, but next time, you should discuss with us first,” Cooper insisted, but Garvin refused and explained, “Ivory is also my daughter.” Thus, he didn’t need anyone’s permission to protect his daughter. The three men all loved Ivory in different ways, and they were ready to avenge her. Since there was no way around Garvin
Ivory may be resilient and resourceful, but this time, she felt the security of being with her family. Gerald was already there for her, but so were her brothers and parents.Nathaniel was not only humiliated but also afraid. With all these powerful men threatening him, he couldn’t find any means of support and was afraid of his father’s deteriorating health.To find a way to get out of this mess, he decided to expose the brain behind it.“It was all Yvette’s idea. She masterminded everything. Please Gerald, I’m very sorry.” Nathaniel looked remorseful, but the damage caused was too much to let go.Ivory had to constantly look over her shoulder because of the enemies she was exposed to.“Why are you blaming me? If I suggested it, did I tell you to go ahead with it?” Yvette was equally trying to find a way to get out of the mess.“So you agree that you suggested it,” Gerald glared at her. She realized she had made a mistake with her words.“Please Gerald, it won’t happen again.”Gerald
Chaos broke out as the guests began to murmur in confusion. Gerald’s expression darkened instantly, but no one else knew what was going on. Ivory didn’t have her hacking tools with her to stop whoever was trying to sabotage her so openly because it was a joyous event. The first name that came to mind was Dean Arlo, but he was being processed for court and wouldn’t dare. Gerald already got the best lawyers to handle his case. The robotic voice continued to speak as images were shown on the screen. “Two years ago, three company servers were destroyed by Ice Panther. Those companies are now closed down with their employees jobless.” The crowd was already feeling pity for the company shown on the screen, but Ivory was boiling with rage. She was trying to figure out who was behind it since it was not hard for her to defend herself. For that reason, she decided to wait a little, hoping to be able to detect the human behind the robot. “A year ago, Ice Panther hacked into a government s
Rosie felt terrible for the hairstylist. She had put in so much effort to put in the extensions and they looked good on Rosie.“I’m sorry, but you have to take everything off,” Rosie said politely, but her voice was stern. The hairstylist did not want to, feeling that if Cooper saw Rosie, he would reconsider.“That will take time. You will be late for your wedding.”“Let it be so, but Cooper’s happiness matters to me. After all, I’m doing all this for him, so what is the essence if he doesn’t like it?” Rosie stood her ground.She would rather be late and appear the way Cooper wanted than to appear on time with a look that would make him upset.Ivory smiled at Rosie’s resolve. She would have done the same for Gerald. It was just as Gerald wanted her to wear that wedding dress, and Ivory couldn’t refuse.“She’s right. You should make the necessary changes. We shall wait for her and everyone else,” Ivory added her voice.The hairstylist sighed frustratedly. “Alright. Please remove the we
Three weeks later, excitement brewed in the air as another joint wedding was announced among the Berets after so many years.A journalist was reporting the news on live TV. “I’m Lola, a reporter from Channel Z. Decades ago, the Parker-Berets and their best friends hosted a mass luxurious wedding.”“The trend is repeating itself as the twins, Cooper and Curtis Parker-Beret, are getting married to the sisters, Rosie and Rosalind. What makes it more interesting is that the last born of the Berets, Ivory, is also getting married to Gerald Scott, the hot CEO of Scotts Automobiles and Cambridge Incorporated.”“I am here to give you every information you need about this mega wedding so stay tuned,” the reporter ended.There was a lot of excitement going on. Curtis’s relationship with Rosalind was well known to the populace so the shocking ones were that of Cooper and Gerald.Most people knew that Gerald was engaged to Yvette, not knowing how he was getting married to Ivory.The news sparked
“Admit it. I won,” Ivory smiled and gave in to sleep. She still had no regrets at all. Gerald smiled and shook his head.His little Pumpkin was growing smarter and smarter by the day, she was even outsmarting him now.It wasn’t long before he fell asleep. The next day, Ivory woke up feeling sore. Her movement woke Gerald.“Pumpkin, are you alright?” He asked worriedly. Pain registered on Ivory’s face. How could something so sweet give her so much pain and ache in the morning?“I feel sore. Is this how you wanted our honeymoon to be? It’s as if I have a knife stuck in there,” Ivory exaggerated the pain.Gerald was worried and said, “Don’t move. I will be right back.” He went out and called his dad on the phone, speaking hastily,“Dad, I had my first time with Ivory and she’s complaining of pain. What should I do?” Gerald could manage two companies flawlessly but with Ivory, he was as helpless as a teenager.His father chuckled at the end of the line. “I see you finally became a man.”G
“Ivory’s cycle falls on our wedding day,” Gerald revealed. The twins understood the weight of the problem as Curtis eagerly suggested,“Dude, you should take your pound of flesh before then.”Gerald chuckled. “I’m still thinking about it but I can’t believe she’s your sister. You are giving me bad advice,” he accused Curtis. He laughed and retorted,“She’s a woman after all. So, what happens to the companies if we all get married on the same day?” He asked.Cooper already had that planned out and asked them, “Isn’t that the reason why we have parents who pioneered the business?”As Gerald and Curtis were nodding their heads in agreement, Cooper added, “That reminds me. We should let them handle our wedding planning too.”“Perfect suggestion,” the three men clicked their wine glasses.That night, Cooper had a serious talk with Rosie. “When you get better, would you like to work in the company? I can train you,” he suggested. Rosie recalled what Ivory told her about Cooper and work.She
Cooper frowned suspiciously, but before he could refuse, Gerald cut in, saying, “I even want to speak to you and Curtis, Cooper.”Cooper glanced at Rosie, and as she smiled, his heart warmed. He said to her, “Excuse me, Rosie, I will be right back.”Rosie chuckled and quickly replied, “Take your time, Cooper, Ivory and Rosalind are here.”Cooper did not like it when other people got his woman’s attention. He was the last to fall in love among the three, and his behavior showed that he was trying to catch up on all the years he lost.“You prefer them better than me?” He asked with a slight jealousy in his tone. Rosie was amazed, smiling and asking him,“Are you jealous?”Cooper pursed his lips but did not immediately respond. “I…I will see you soon,” he said and walked out with the two men.Rosalind was glad that Ivory created this opportunity for them to have a girls' talk. She quickly asked her sister,“Rosie, you look happier and better than I ever saw you. What have you been doing?
"Is it the doctors? It’s not yet time for my routine check," Rosie said, equally at a loss. As the plane lowered, Cooper detected the person in it."No. It’s Gerald. That’s his family jet."The two of them walked towards the jet to meet the person in it. It was just as Cooper said. Gerald was the first to alight, his arm intertwined with that of Ivory.Cooper frowned a little at the intrusion and said, "I didn’t know you were coming."Rosie and Ivory had already hugged each other. "Rosie, you look stunning. What is on this Island that makes you look so good? I want to join you," Ivory said half-jokingly. Rosie blushed and looked at Cooper.She knew that not only her health but appearance had also greatly improved."We decided to surprise you but we have something very important to discuss," Gerald was saying to Cooper when another couple alighted from the jet.Cooper wanted more time with his woman and was not pleased with the intrusion, especially when they had not informed him."I s